I Burned Instead
by forestwife
Summary: Implied TenRose. Set just after TCI. Jackie’s POV. Jackie asks the Doctor about his regeneration.


Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who

I Burned Instead

Rose and the Doctor were staying in London for the rest of Christmas, and for the New Year.

It made sense really. It meant that Rose could spend some quality time with her mum and Mickey, while the Doctor could finish recovering from his regeneration sickness.

Naturally, Jackie was delighted that her little girl would be staying for a proper visit for once. After all, she scarcely saw Rose anymore when there were no aliens involved. Therefore, for the rest of this holiday, they were going to be a completely normal family having a completely normal, alien-free New Year… apart from the Doctor of course.

Jackie didn't mind that the Doctor would be staying too, and much to Rose's surprise, she quite liked this 'new' Doctor. He was a lot more cheerful, and just generally friendlier than the last one, not to mention he was a lot better looking now.

Of course, his previous self hadn't been without his charm. But the new him was just drop dead gorgeous, with his soulful brown eyes, sharp features and messy brown hair. Jackie shook her head to clear her thoughts. She shouldn't be thinking that way about the Doctor! He was… well, he _looked_ too young for her, when in reality he was around 9 centuries older than she was!

However, that wasn't the main reason why Jackie knew she should keep her thoughts about the Doctor strictly platonic. The real reason was that Rose loved him. She always had, Jackie could tell.

At first, Jackie had been unsure as to whether her daughter still had the same feelings for this new Doctor, but when she'd seen the look in Rose's eyes when the Doctor joined them for Christmas dinner, she knew. Rose still loved him. And probably more than she had before, if that was possible.

However, it was still unclear to Jackie as to whether this new Doctor reciprocated those feelings. It was apparent that his feelings towards people could change (if his behaviour towards herself and Mickey was to be trusted), so had his feelings for Rose changed?

She knew that the old Doctor would have done anything for her daughter. She hadn't liked him, but she'd always trusted that he would do everything in his power to keep Rose as safe as possible. His words from the Slitheen invasion sprang to mind, _"I could save the world, but lose you…"_ He had considered not going through with his plan, because there was a risk that Rose could've been killed. Hell, she knew that man would've _died_ for Rose. But had he?

Later in the day, Jackie had a perfect opportunity to find out. Mickey and Rose had gone out shopping, but the Doctor had decided to stay behind. He'd insisted that he didn't do shopping, and had seemed desperate for an excuse to stay behind. So she'd provided him with one.

Jackie had told him that the TV needed fixing, and that she wanted some more shelves put up. For some reason, Rose had found the notion of the Doctor putting up shelves very entertaining. Probably one of those 'you had to be there' kind of jokes.

I only took the Doctor ½ an hour to fix the TV and, with some jiggery-pokery, even re-programmed it so it could pick up alien channels if she wanted it to! Then it only took him 10 minutes to put up the shelves, with that sonic screwdriver of his.

Once he'd finished, Jackie handed him a cup of tea, pushed him towards a chair and said, "Sit," in the most commanding voice she could manage. It worked too! The Doctor meekly sat down, clearly wondering what he'd done now, and whether he was going to get another slap for it!

"Now," she continued, "no interrupting. There's a few things I want to know."

To her surprise, the Doctor didn't protest, and merely nodded understandingly.

Feeling more confident, she continued, "You're not the same man as you were before. I get that. So I need to know if my little girl is safe. I need to know if you can promise me that you'll bring her back safely."

"I can't promise that Jackie," the Doctor said, solemn-faced, "you know that. But I can promise you that I will always do everything and anything in my power to try and keep Rose safe."

She believed him. It was in his eyes and his voice. The assurance that he still loved Rose as much as he had before, if not more, and that he'd protect her with the same fierceness as he always had.

Relaxing slightly, Jackie picked up her own mug of tea and sat down next to the Doctor.

"One more thing Doctor…" she took a deep breath, and asked the question she knew Rose would never ask, "Why did you die? What happened to you?"

"I absorbed the time vortex Jackie. And no one, not even me, is meant to do that. No one can do it, and live."

"The time--" Jackie began, confused.

"The heart of the TARDIS," the Doctor explained.

"But… that's what Rose looked at, when you sent her back. She wanted to get inside the ship, so it could listen to what she wanted."

"Yes, Rose absorbed the time vortex. She destroyed the Daleks, thereby saving the earth, and billions of lives, including mine," the Doctor said, the image of Rose surrounded by golden light still fresh in his memory.

"What do you mean she saved you? You died!" Jackie exclaimed.

"Yes I did," the Doctor nodded, "but she saved me from a far more permanent death. Even I can't come back from being exterminated by a Dalek."

"Ok, but if what you're saying is true, then how did you die? And how can Rose still be alive? If she looked into that-- whatever it is-- thing that no one's meant to look at?"

"Rose looked into the TARDIS because she wanted to save me. But she was dying. The energy was too much for her body to handle. She was burning, and it was all my fault. So…" The Doctor took a deep breath, "So, I took the time vortex from her… and I burned instead."

Jackie gasped in shock; her hand covering her mouth, The Doctor _had_ died for Rose. He'd saved her, at the cost of his own life. Or one of them anyway.

She burst into tears, it suddenly hitting home how close she'd come to losing her only child.

She pulled him into a tearful hug, grateful when he returned it, and whispered into his shoulder, "Thank you… Thank you so much for what you did for Rose."

Jackie barely heard his reply, so low she almost missed it. "I wouldn't have it any other way Jackie. She is worth dying for."

The End

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So, did you like? Please review and tell me! And there will be cookies for all peoples who find the slightly obscure references to 'the end of the world' or 'the Doctor Dances'! (they're not too hard!)


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